Telephone-index.



F. W. COLBY.

TELEPHONE INDEX..

APPLICATION FILED JAN.19. 1916.

1,286,268. Pate11tedAug.7,'1917.

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' lnven'ifor FredericK \NCoUoy, y M

are desirous of having their rinirnn *srarne FREDERICK W. COLBY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

TELEPHONE-INDEX.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 7, 1917.

Application filed January 19, 1916. Serial No. 73,065.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, FREDERICK W. COLBY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, county of Sulfolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Telephone-Indexes, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawing, is a specification, like characters on the drawing representing like parts.

This invention relates to an improvement in a telephone index.

Users of telephones generally call several telephone numbers with frequency and, further, certain commercial or other houses telephone designations in readily accessible form for the use of their customers. This device provides a means to effect such function and constitutes an improvement upon the device disclosed in the prior application SerialNo. 22,424, of the inventor hereof. This device is readily adaptable to offer a wide range of usefulness similar to that of the prior device above-mentioned. The selected embodiment of the instrumentality is that of a device adapted to be used in conjunction with a telephone.

An object of this invention is to provide a compact, durable and eflicient index instrumentality of the character stated.

A further object is to provide a more efficient spring tension adjustment and to reduce the friction of the moving parts to a modicum.

Other objects of the invention will more fully appear from the following description and the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the annexed claim.

In the drawings,

Figure l is a side elei ation of a telephone instrument showing the improved index applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 3, the strip being omitted;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33 of Fig. 1, looking down;

Fig. 4 is a section on Fig. 2, some ofthe elevation;

the line l4- of parts being shown in Fig. 5 is a detail of the spool top, being shown in section;

Fig. 6 is a detail of the spring end;

Fig. 7 is a detail showing the method of 'fascitening the strip in the tubular handle;

Fig. 8is a detail of the welted end ofthe strip.

The selected embodiment of this improvement is shown as demountably attached to a telephone instrument of the type at present in use though obviously it may readily be attached to other types. The base 1, of the instrument has mounted thereon the standard 2, to which is detachably fastened the index by means of a clamp. The index primarily comprises, in this preferred construction, a casing 3 of light, durable material such as sheet metal. The interior member, the roller or spool 4 is similarly fabricated. The spool is rotatably mounted the post within the casing 3, while the characterbearing. member, shown as a strip 5 of a light, durable fabric or other suitably flexible material, has one transverse end thereof secured to this spool. The spool is mounted in upright position, that is, substantially parallel to the position normally assumed by the telephone instrument. WVhile the spool may be so mounted in various ways and by various means, it is preferably substantially held in rotatable suspended position through the intermediary of bearing means in the upper portion of the casing. The lower end of the spool is provided with a guiding means which has a small annular bearing surface so that friction is reduced to a modicum at this end. The spool a has upper and lower heads 7 and 8 respectively. The upper head 7, whichmay be formed by any suitable means, is preferably stamped out of metal into the form of an annularly flanged disk. The

I upper end of the spool has a driving fit in the annular flange 6 of the upper head. The head 7 is of substantially smaller diameter than the inside bore of the casing 3 so that upon rotation freedom from frictional contact with the casing is assured to the head. This disk head 7 is apertured to receive therethrough the post 10. This aperture is of angular contour, a preferable form being that of a square as shown in Fig. 5. The lower end of the post 10 is square and of such dimensions as to effect a snug lit with the aperture of the head 7. The major portion 11 of the post is cylindrical and is suitably rotatably mounted in the spring chamber formed by the cap 12. Spring tension means are positioned in this chamber to cooperate with the post and thus to govern normally the spool movement so that the strip may be retained wound thereabout. In this selected embodiment, a coiled spring 13 is preferably employed, one end being held in relatively fixed position while the other end is secured to the rotatable spool post. Means for demountably positioning this spring within the chamber are employed to secure ease of replacement and repair. To this end a portion 14 of the cylindrical cap 12 is outwardly stamped. Means are provided whereby the spring end may be preferably demountably secured to this stamped out portion 14 and, to this end, a stud 15 is fixedly secured to the portion 14. The head 16 of the stud inwardly projects substantially to an imaginary continuation of the inside circumference of the cap 12. The relatively fixed end of the spring 13 is provided with a locking slot 17, the circular portion 18 of which offers a facile means for the entrance of the head 16 of the stud into the locking slot. The spring 13 is coiled about the spool post while the other end of the spring may be attached to the post by any suitable means. It is deemed preferable to form a transverse slot 19 in the portion 11 of the post. The scc- 0nd spring end is bent and vertically positioned in this slot. A. cotter pin 20 is received within a boring in the post made at an angle to that of the slot. This pin functions to hold the spring against upward movement in its place. The collar 21 is preferably placed about the cylindrical portion 11 of the post. The portion of the coiled spring at this end winds about the collar which is split providing the spring end with access to the transverse slot of the post through the opening 22. The end portions of the collar adjacent the split are suitably rounded to offer a guiding medium to the entrant spring portion in order to minimize any unusual bending stress which would be present were this turn of the spring sharply defined.

The cap 12 has an annular flange 23 which effects a tight fit with the upper end of the casing 3. The base 24 of the cap 12 is circularly apertured so that the cylindrical portion 11 of the post may easily pass there through and rotate therein.

The top of the casing 3 is closed by a suitable cover 25. This cover is preferably only of suiiicient height above the top of the post so that any upward movement of the post in operation of the index will not cause it to touch the cover. The bottom spool head 8 functions primarily as a lower guiding member for the rotatable spool 4 within the casing 3. This head may be simply a flanged ring but to lower construction costs it is made substantially similar to the head 7. The head 8 has an annular shoulder or flange 26 which tightly embraces the lower end of the spool 4.

The indicia-bearing member 5 preferably is detachably. secured to the spool 4. And, for this purpose, a double lap or welt 27, as shown in Fig. 8, is formed on the inner transverse end of the strip 5. The spool has a longitudinal slot 28 extending from a point adjacent its top end to its lower end. The spool is preferably formed from a substantially oblong piece of sheet metal having a slightly enlarged end portion so that when rolled into tubular form the enlarged ends will be brought into contact while the major longitudinal end portions of the metal will thus be spaced apart forming a slot. The upper end of the slotted spool is thus closed. This is effected in order that when the edge of the strip 5 is slipped along the slot, the upper longitudinal edge of the strip will be limited in movement by the closed portion of the slot. The welt 27 of the strip, being positioned within the spool, as shown in Fig. 3, functions to hold this transverse or vertical end of the strip against removal by force applied longitudinally. The lower head 8 functions as a demountable means for closing the lower end of the spool slot 28- and thereby retaining the strip 5 therein.

The strip 5 is wound about the spool positioned within the casing 3 and has its outer end portion normally projecting through the longitudinal slot 29 in the outside casing. As the spool is under spring tension which normally tends to wind the strip thereabout, it is preferable that means be afforded to function as a stop to prevent the withdrawal within the casing of the outer end of the strip. F or this purpose a tubular handle 30 1s secured to the strips outer end. This handle is of a diameter sufficiently large to prevent its entry within the slot of the casing 3. A similar welt 27 is formed on this outer end of the strip. This welted transverse end of the strip is positioned within a longitudinal slot 31 in the handle 30. A plug 32, having a substantially tapering lower portion 33, is placed within the top opening of the tubular handle and functions to close the top of the handle and to wedge the strip securely in retained position. This tubular member therefore operates not only as a handle by which the indicia-bearing strip may be pulled from the casinginto view but also functions to prevent the strip end from passing completely within the casing.

The outer casing slot 29, through which the strip 5 is drawn, is closed at its lower end by means of instrumentalities which function also to secure this lower end portion in a relatively fixed position. These instrumentalities may be removable or permanently affixed to the casing. But in this preferred embodiment, these instrumentalities are positioned with a driving fit and the finish of the device is applied thereafter so that this end is substantially fool-proof. Herein are provided inner and outer flanged caps. The inner cap 31 functions as a means for maintaining the inside gage of the outer casing to assure the running, guiding fit of the head 8 of the rotatable spool. This cap 3 1 is driven within the end of the casing 3 so that its base does not contact with the spool head 8 and so that its downwardly projecting flange assumes the position shown in Fig. 2. The annular flange of the cap 35 upwardly projects to embrace this casing end portion so that it is doubly held in the desired shape and gage against factors tending to its distortion when in hard service.

A suitable means for securing the device to the usual telephone instrument is here shown. It comprises a member 36 which is preferably rigidly secured to the casing This member 36 has a straight connecting portion 37 having, in this embodiment, longitudinal flanges which embrace the straight terminal portion 38 of the clamping member 39 which adjustably embraces the instrument 2. The instrument-embracing member 39 has a straight portion similar to 38 which is opposed thereto. These two straight portions are drawn toward each other securely to embrace the instrument by means of the set screw 10 passed through the portion 37 of the member 36 and received in threaded engagement in the opposed straight portion of the member 39. It is thus apparent that the lower casing end is maintained in more or less rigid position; and, somewhat similarly, is the portion of the casing embraced by the mem ber 36; while the resiliency of the sheet metal, out of which the casing is preferably formed, insures a demountable yet tightly fitting connection between the chamberforming cap 12 and the upper end of the casing. Thus, sufficient frictional resistance to torque caused by the unwinding of the strip is assured to prevent the turning of the cap 12 on the casing. Yet this resistance is easily overcome in the manual turning of the cap to place the spring 13 under greater or less tension as desired. This casing slot 29 permits the contract1on of the upper end portion of the casing by the flange 23 and the above-mentioned resiliency of the casing tending to expand the casing holds the cap 12 from turning. Such torqueresisting frictional resistance, through contraction of the slotted end of the resilient casing by the cap 12, functionsto add greatly to the durability and efficiency of the device in that wear of the cap and the opposed contacting casing end has compensation in the resiliency of the casing which retains this effectual frictional resistance throughout the life of the parts.

The assemblage of the few parts of this novel index is simple while the replacement or repair of one or more parts is equally easy. Strip replacement is quickly effected by vertically sliding the strip free from slotted handle 30, by removing the flanged cap 12, lifting the strip-bearing spool upwardly while the strip slides vertically out the open casing slot 29, then removing the bottom spool cap 8 and sliding out the strip through the spool slot 28, and then by inserting a new strip in the spool slot and reversing these simple operations. The friction induced by the spool rotation is minimized by tion while the running, guiding fit of the lower disk or ring construction keeps the friction factor at that point almost negligible. Facility of operation is assured.

The novel frictional spring-tension ad justment feature of this embodiment of the invention affords maximum flexibility of spring tension control co-inoidentally with the efficiency of a ratchet and pawl or stud and lock means. The mode of maintaining the true diameter or gage of the casing inside, with relation to the movable. lower spool head, through the novel cap or disk construction is likewise conducive to the simple efficiency of the structure. Furthermore, the production costs of this novel device are low; it is durable, eflicient, simple of manipulation and readily positionable for use.

It is to be understood that the construction disclosed herein is illustrative but not restrictive and that the same may be modified within the meaning and scope of the claim which follows.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

In a device of the class described, a cylindrical casing having a longitudinal slot, a spool rotatable in said casing, a flexible strip normally wound about said spool and having one end secured thereto, the other end extending through said casing slot, a chambenforming cap frictionally held on said casing by a depending annular flange, a post rotatably mounted in said cap and this suspended bearing construcprojecting freely rotatable through an apersaid cap chamber connected to said post so ture in the cap base, a head for said spool, that the strip may be Withdrawn through 10 said head having an angular aperture tightly the casing slot and automatically returned to receive therethrough a similarly shaped When released. 5 portion of said post, the post end being In testimony whereof I have signed my enlarged to retain said spool in suspended name to this specification. position thereon whereby the spool must rotate With said post, spring tension means in FREDERICK W. COLBY.

Copies of this patent may he obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

